An August headline on the sports website Bleacher Report asked: “Is Orlando Magic’s Rob Hennigan the NBA’s Most Inept GM?” The accompanying story blasted Hennigan for trading star center Dwight Howard to the Lakers that month and not getting enough in return.

But the criticism of the Worcester native and St. John’s High graduate has disappeared like, well, Magic. In fact, a headline last week on Bleacher Report read: “Orlando Magic Are Officially Winners of Dwight Howard Trade.”

Hennigan, the NBA’s youngest general manager at age 30, insisted he paid no attention to the flak he took for making the trade or the praise he is receiving in hindsight.

“The one thing we tried to do from the beginning,” he told the T&G, “was stay emotion-neutral through the whole process and as best we could block out any peripheral noise that we were hearing.”

So he wasn’t upset with the negative reaction early on and he’s not gloating now.

Howard wanted out of Orlando so the Magic felt compelled to deal him before his contract expired this summer. Just two months after the Magic hired Hennigan, a four-team deal was worked out. The Magic sent their five-time, first-team All-NBA center to the Lakers along with Chris Duhon and Earl Clark. They also dealt Jason Richardson to Philadelphia. In return, Orlando received swingman Arron Affalo and forward Al Harrington from Denver, center Nikola Vucevic and the rights to 2012 draft pick Moe Harkless from Philadelphia, and forward Josh McRoberts and guard Christian Eyenga from L.A. The Magic will also receive five draft picks over the next four years.

The other highlights of the trade were the Sixers acquiring Andrew Bynum from the Lakers and sending Andre Iguodala to Denver.

“We felt the trade,” Hennigan said, “was something we had to make to move the organization forward and start to change the identity and the culture of the team and start bringing in guys who wanted to be here.”

Of the four teams involved in the deal, only Orlando considered this to be a rebuilding year, but the Lakers and Sixers have disappointed, and the future for the Magic holds promise.

Going into Saturday, the 14-28 Magic are 12th in the Eastern Conference and the 18-25 Lakers are tied for 11th in West.

Bynum has yet to play this season because of knee trouble and the 17-25 Sixers are ninth in the Eastern Conference.

Howard was expected to continue the good times in L.A., but he is reportedly unhappy with the perimeter-oriented offense of Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni so he might be dealt before the Feb. 21 trade deadline to avoid losing him to free agency this summer. Iguodala has disappointed in Denver.

Meanwhile, Orlando suffered through a 10-game losing streak and has lost 15 of its last 17 after holding its own early on. The Magic figure to miss the playoffs for the first time since 2006, but there is hope on the horizon.

Vucevic, the 16th pick in 2011 out of USC, averages 11.8 points a game and, among those who have played more than 25 games, ranks third in the NBA in rebounding with 11.1 a game, one behind the league-leading Howard at a fraction of the cost.

Affalo is averaging a career-high 17 points. The 6-8 Harkless, taken by the Sixers with the 15th pick last June, is averaging only 3.8 points, but he’s an athletic freak with lots of promise and he’s only 19. Vucevic is just 22 .

“We’re really proud of them and we believe in them,” Hennigan said.

Andrew Nicholson, the 6-9 forward whom Orlando drafted out of St. Bonaventure with the 19th pick in June, is averaging 7.4 points and 3.2 rebounds. He’s just 23.

Former Celtic Glen “Big Baby” Davis missed Orlando’s 10-game skid in late December and early this month with a sprained left shoulder, but he’s back and averaging career highs of 15.4 points and 7.4 rebounds.

“Glen has been great,” Hennigan said. “Glen has really stepped into a leadership role and embraced being a captain. He’s brought a consistent work ethic and a real maturity that has permeated the locker room and created some positive energy for us.”

No one ever called Davis “mature” in Boston, but most Celtics fans would love to have him back, especially with the way Brandon Bass has disappointed this season. Davis is only 27, but he’s one of Orlando’s more experienced players. Harrington has yet to play because of a knee injury, and a broken left hand has limited Hedo Turkoglu to six games.

Guard E’Twaun Moore, who was a rookie with the Celtics last season, averages 8.7 points and is shooting 39.2 percent from threeland. Moore, 23, would have been a much younger and cheaper option for the Celtics than Jason Terry, 35, who is averaging 9.8 points and shooting 35.2 percent from deep.

Despite their losing record, the young Magic still managed to beat the Lakers and Clippers in LA this season. Orlando fouled Howard repeatedly in the fourth quarter and his missed foul shots helped the Magic pull out the victory.

“It’s been a great challenge,” Hennigan said of becoming a GM. “It’s been invigorating, it’s been stimulating, it’s been frustrating at times. There are a lot of different emotions that go into it, but it’s been a lot of fun. I’m fortunate enough to work with some great people and there’s a real sense of togetherness and unity that we’re establishing down here and it’s a lot of fun to be part of.”

Hennigan has been so wrapped up in the nonstop pace and intensity of being a GM that he has yet to visit Disney World.

“I’m going to make it point to go there at some point,” he said. “It’s long overdue considering I live 20 minutes away.”

Having such a young team fits Orlando’s profile. In addition to Hennigan being the NBA’s youngest GM, Jacque Vaughn, 37, is the youngest head coach.

“He’s done great,” Hennigan said of Vaughn. “He’s incredibly consistent in everything he does. His preparation, his communication style and the way he can relate to the players and motivate them is really something that we’re proud of and excited about as we continue to build the team. We think we have a great coach.”

During his four years in the front office of the Spurs and four with the Thunder, Hennigan was too busy scouting to make it to Boston. But he’ll be at the Garden Friday night when the Magic play the team he rooted for while growing up.

“I think it will be a little bit surreal in a good way,” he said. “I think it will be a lot of fun.”

It will be his first Celtics game at the Garden since he was a student at Emerson College and saw the Celtics rally from 21 down to shock the Nets, 94-90, in Game 3 of the 2002 Eastern Conference Finals.

Hennigan’s wife, Marissa, and mother-in-law will be at the game. So will his parents, Bob and Lynn, who still live in Tatnuck, as well as his sisters, Kate, Anne and Elizabeth, and plenty of friends. Hennigan isn’t sure where he’ll be sitting.

“I may be sitting in the stands,” he said, “or pacing back and forth in the tunnel depending on how the game is going.”

The Hennigans used to be huge Celtics fans, but now they all root for the Magic. Bob attended a couple of games in Orlando and one in Washington and he’s watched every other Magic game on DirecTV.

“I offer him advice all the time,” Bob said. “He just ignores it like he should.”

“He keeps bugging me for a promotion,” Hennigan said. “I told him he’s still a regional scouting intern, but he’s been bugging me for a promotion for a while now.”

Bob has become the ultimate fantasy general manager.

“That’s a good way to describe him,” Hennigan said. “He’ll typically call me and say, ‘Hey, you should make this trade or that trade.’ And then I quickly tell him that wouldn’t work under the rules.

“He offers me a lot of free advice,” Hennigan said, “and I like to say you usually get what you pay for.”

Hennigan helped St. John’s win a state title in 2000 so his father sent him the T&G article about Bob Foley, his former coach, winning his 800th career game this month.